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Desalination remains a practical and affordable solution for water supply. Next in our Sustainable Water Management Series, representatives from the Texas Water Development Board, City of Corpus Christi and Freese and Nichols weigh in on the successes of desalination so far in Texas. They’ll also cover the scientific and policy lessons learned so far.

Texas Brackish Groundwater Science and Policy: Texas Water Development Board’s Innovative Water Technologies group was formed to educate the...

Tuesday, Sept. 24, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) approved a water right permit for the Lake Ralph Hall project in Fannin County. The new reservoir will increase available water supplies for customers of the Upper Trinity Regional Water District (UTRWD) by at least 10 billion gallons a year, but permits yet to be approved by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) are required before this project can become a reality. However, TCEQ’s...

Although drought conditions across most of Texas have improved since October of 2011, the June 19 U.S. Drought Monitor indicates that only 10 percent of the state is drought-free. This spring, reservoir levels increased significantly in many areas of the state, which has caused some Texans to resort back to a state of apathy in the hydro-illogic cycle (discussed in the April 27th...

When much-needed rains soaked many parts of the state, residents and media outlets cheered, “The drought has broken!” The rains were a relief to those areas; however, much of the state remains in a serious drought, and many municipalities in other areas are cautiously maintaining their Stage I, Stage II, or even Stage III drought status.

Fortunately, those municipalities have avoided falling prey to the “hydro-illogical” cycle, where apathy follows rain, and then concern...

For much of Texas, the drought of 2011 is the most severe one-year drought on record. Climatologists predict the drought will continue for the foreseeable future. Additionally, Texas continues to grow rapidly in many metropolitan areas. These and other factors put pressure on existing water supplies to meet demands. Water Resources Project Manager and Freese and Nichols Principal Rusty Gibson addressed these factors in a recent paper prepared for the American Society of Civil Engineers....